Greek Salad serves 3-41 head of romaine, red leaf, or green leaf lettuce6 large fresh basil leaves½ cucumber2 Roma tomatoes2 slices of red onion1/3 cup Kalamata olives, pitted1/3 cup feta cheeseDressing:3 Tbsp olive oil2 Tbsp red wine vinegarsalt and freshly ground black pepper Wash and spin (or let dry) the lettuce. Tear or cut into bite-sized pieces. Place on a plate. Peel and dice the cucumber and sprinkle over the lettuce. Dice the tomatoes and sprinkle over cucumber. Take the onion slices and cut into 1-inch pieces; add to salad. Cut the olives in half length-wise and add to salad. Sprinkle 1/3 cup feta cheese over the top. Finely chop the basil leaves and add to the top of the salad. Cover and refrigerate till ready to serve. For the dressing, whisk together the olive oil and the vinegar. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and whisk again.

Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole serves 4-64 large chicken breastsfreshly ground black pepper1 (10 ½ oz) can cream of mushroom soup1 (10 ½ oz) can cream of chicken soup1 (16 oz) carton of sour cream3 Tbsp poppy seeds1 sleeve Ritz (or similar) crackers, crushed1/2 cup melted butter Heat oven to 375. Cut chicken into strips or bite sized pieces and place on the bottom of a 9x13 glass baking dish. Sprinkle the chicken with black pepper. In a bowl, combine the soups, the sour cream, and the poppy seeds. Pour this mixture over the chicken. Cook at 375 for 30-35 minutes, till chicken is cooked through. Turn oven down to 350. Take baking dish out of oven and sprinkle the crushed crackers over the top. Drizzle the butter over the crackers. Return to oven for 5 minutes; then remove. Serve over rice.

Green Beans with Shallots serves 3-41 bag frozen green beans2 shallots1 clove garlic1 Tbsp buttersalt and freshly ground black pepperPlace beans in a pot with about 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil. Boil until beans are tender, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.Meanwhile, heat butter in a frying pan, and slice shallots. Saute shallots over low heat. Just before shallots are done, add one pressed clove garlic to the pan.When beans are done, drain and return to pot. Add the shallots and garlic to the beans. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir and serve.

Chinese Broccoli and Beef A NEW FAVORITE serves 3-41/3 cup soy sauce1 Tbsp oil2 shallots2 lbs beef chuck steak (or similar)2 cups frozen (or fresh broccoli), cut1/3 cup stir fry saucerice Trim fat off of steak and cut into 2-inch long slices, as thinly as possible. Place the meat onto a plate. Pour soy sauce over meat and mix. Return to refrigerator and let it marinate for at least one hour (or overnight). Place broccoli in a pot with 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil, cover, and let steam till broccoli is tender. Drain.Heat oil in a large pan. Slice shallots and add to pan. Cook for one minute before adding beef (drain soy sauce from beef first). Cook beef until no longer pink in the middle, (8-10 minutes). Shallots will be soft by this point.Add broccoli to beef. Pour stir fry sauce over beef and broccoli. Cook 2 minutes more; remove from heat. Serve over rice.

Lemon-Garlic ChickenFAILURE. It was way too dry, so I'll have to try that one again...

Spaghetti Soup with Basil serves 2-4(ONLY MAKE THIS ONE IF YOU REALLY LIKE BASIL. IT'S PRETTY BASILY)5 oz spaghetti, broken in half twice¼ onion (white or yellow)2 cloves garlic¼ cup fresh basil, chopped1 Tbsp butterfreshly ground black pepperCook spaghetti according to package instructions. Drain, return to pot, and cover with lid.While spaghetti is cooking, dice onion and press garlic cloves. Heat butter in a pan, and sauté onion and garlic until tender (about 7 minutes).Add chicken broth to the pot of spaghetti. Add in onions and garlic and bring to a simmer. Add in basil and pepper to taste; stir.

Thai Green CurryWe tried this pre-made jarred curry from Trader Joe's. It was too spicy for me, but really flavorful. We ate it over chicken, rice, and broccoli.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Last Saturday, we went to a friend's birthday party at Chuck E Cheese. Here's Chad and Benji having a grand ol' time.

Ethan eats a cupcake and is able to enjoy it more thoroughly by letting his face taste it as well.On Monday, the boys wear matching outfits. Oh no, have I turned into one of THOSE moms? But they look so cute, do they not?On Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, we have cooler weather, some of it rainy. Here's Ethan in a warm jacket playing transformers outside before it started raining.On Thursday, after it started raining, I took the boys to run some errands at Lowe's and Michael's to get MOPS craft supplies. WHAT WAS I THINKING?? And then we went to Chick Fil A to play inside. Chick Fil A makes me very happy. I hope they have their deluxe chicken sandwiches with Chick Fil A sauce in Heaven...

Here's Benji modeling a hooded shirt and chewing on stuff--that's what he does best--chewing on stuff, I mean, not modeling.On Friday, Ethan eats raisins without spitting them out for the first time!I get fed up with bad hair days, such as this one, and make an appointment for next Wednesday to have it all removed, or at least to have it cut very short.

I now have two things to catch up on. First of all, Jackie Lynn has given me the "I Love Your Blog Award." Thanks, Jackie Lynn, that makes me feel really special! With the award, I have to answer the following questions with one word only:1. Where is your phone? charging2. Where is your significant other? working3 .Your hair color? mousy4. Your Mother? gentle5. Your Father? doctor6. Your favorite thing? chocolate7. Your dream last night? dunno8. Your goal? Christian9. The room you're in? "office"10. Your hobby? reading11. Your fear? spiders12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? house13. Where were you last night? home14. What you're not? rich15. One of your wish-list items? clothes16. Where you grew up? Zimbabwe17. The last thing you ate? macaroons18. What are you wearing? clothes (I should hope so!)19. Your TV? off20. Your pet? annoying21. Your computer? MAC!22. Your mood? moody23. Missing someone? yes24. Your car? 1988! (I'm not joking)25. Something you're not wearing? earrings26. Favorite store? Target27. Your Summer? busy28. Love someone? family29. Your favorite color? two30. When was the last time you laughed? morning31. Last time you cried? Tuesday32.Something you crave? chocolate33. Why you blog? release

I now give the "I Love Your Blog Award" to Michelle P and Jessica for "The Native Expatriate."

And, finally, Rachel tagged me on this fun game: Open the 4th folder where you keep your photos. Choose the 4th photo without editing it! Explain the photo. Luckily, this is not embarrassing or hard. Here's one of Benji's 6-month pictures I took. Aw, isn't he cute?

Monday, January 19, 2009

Alas, my friends, I have FAILED. I spent $30 on the groceries this week (see previous post). I wasn't thinking about other important essentials, like bread and fruit, baby food and salad dressing. I needed vinegar to clean out my water filter, which is growing algae, and that was 1.89, and I needed lemon juice, and that was 2.99. Oh well, I still spent a lot less this week than usual.

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Okay, folks, I’ve been spending too much money trying out so many new recipes. So, this week, I’m going to give myself a crazy challenge: only spend $20 on groceries. The only reason I think it can work is because I have a ton of stuff in my freezer and my pantry. This could also be called The Great Pantry Clean-Out. I am only slightly more excited about this week than I would be about a root canal. I have a big bag of frozen chicken, frozen green beans, tons of frozen broccoli, plenty of canned goods, seasoning packets, rice, frozen hamburger patties, and pasta. I’m only purchasing about 5 items (not including WIC items … God bless WIC).Here’s the plan:Sunday: tuna casserole (yes, people, even I will eat such items)Monday: poppy seed chicken casserole with rice and frozen green beansTuesday: spiral pasta, broccoli, and chicken with pesto sauceWednesday: bean and cheese quesadillasThursday: hamburgers and green saladFriday: curry potatoes, broccoli, and carrotsSaturday: leftovers

Spiral pasta, broccoli, and chicken with pesto sauce½ lb (8 oz) spiral pasta2 cups broccoli (fresh or frozen)2 small chicken breasts Place chicken in baking pan. Rub olive oil on both sides and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Turn chicken over and bake 15 minutes more. Let cool, then dice. In large pot, cook pasta according to directions on package. Drain and return to pot. In another pot, steam broccoli till soft; drain. Add broccoli and diced chicken to pasta. Make pesto sauce (I’ll use Knorr’s pesto sauce mix), and add to the pasta mixture.

Bean and cheese quesadillas Makes 21 can black beans, rinsed and drained1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese¼ cup diced green onions½ cup diced tomatoes4 tortillas Spray skillet with non-stick cooking spray. Heat to medium heat. Place one tortilla in the skillet. Sprinkle with half the beans, half the cheese, half the onions, and half the tomatoes. Top with another tortilla. Grill on one side for 3-5 minutes, then flip over and grill the other side till cheese is melted and outside of tortilla is slightly blackened. Repeat with other tortillas.

Hamburgers Chad will grill the hamburgers. We’ll have green salad with ‘em.

Curry Potatoes, broccoli, and carrots1 bag tri-color potatoes2 cups broccoli1 cup sliced carrotsTrader Joe’s yellow or red curry sauce Clean and cut potatoes into chunks. Place in a baking pan and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Take out and stir. Return to oven for another 25 minutes. In the meantime, steam carrots and broccoli till soft. Mix all vegetable together and serve with warmed curry sauce.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Hope: Ethan, did you have fun at your party last night?Ethan: Yes.Hope: Did you like your yummy cupcake?Ethan: Yes. And my hotdogs.Hope: Yeah, I know, you ate two hotdogs! That's pretty amazing.Ethan: It was amazing in my tummy.